


Strawberries in Silver

by Juliet_Mooney



Category: K-pop, 방탄소년단 | Bangtan Boys | BTS
Genre: Alternate Universe - Monster Hunters, BTS AU, Brief EXO cameo thing, Fantastic Racism, Werewolf, normal interactions
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-01-12
Updated: 2020-03-08
Packaged: 2021-02-27 03:42:22
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 12
Words: 16,912
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/22220503
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Juliet_Mooney/pseuds/Juliet_Mooney
Summary: Following the story of Kim Taehyung, a werewolf living in a world afraid of monsters. He joins a team of monster-hunters to show that not all monsters should be feared. What challenges will he face, and who can he trust in BTS?
Comments: 5
Kudos: 12





	1. A Wolf Walks into a Police Station

Kim Taehyung got off the train from Daegu and made his way out of Seoul Station. He got out his camera and took some pictures of the city. He walked into the closest shop and started asking about the Bangtan Boys.

The cashier looked very confused. "Are they idols or something?"  
Tae shook his head. “No, they’re monster hunters.”

The cashier nodded in understanding. “Oh, those guys. I’ve heard that they live in some condemned police station. That building could fall on their heads any second.”

Tae considered going back to Daegu yet again. He chased away his indecision by thinking about his parents. “Where is that?” he asked.

“A few kilometers from here. It’s somewhere along Wang Drive. You can’t miss it.”

Tae took the sticky note and thanked the cashier. He left the store and called a taxi. He loaded his suitcase into the trunk and told the driver where he wanted to go. Tae decided to be friendly and made light conversation with the driver.

When they turned onto Wang, the driver stopped in front of the building in question. “Are you sure you want to walk into that building?”

Tae got out his wallet. “Yes, I’m sure. Thank you,” he said, handing the driver his money. He got out and pulled his suitcase out of the trunk.

“Be careful,” the driver called as he pulled away.

Tae looked at the intimidating building and took a deep breath. “Fighting,” he muttered.

He opened the door and went inside. It was very dim inside, but Tae could see a desk with a little silver bell. He eagerly went up to ring it. He hit it a few times before someone came out from the back room.

“Hello,” Tae said.

“Hello,” the person replied.

Tae stood there awkwardly, staring at the person. He was very handsome and tall. He had lovely pink hair as well.

“My name is Jin. Do you need something?” he said after a while.

Tae blinked. “Oh, yes! I’d like to join the Bangtan Boys.”

Jin smiled. “Daebak! First things first, you need a code name.”

Tae had been thinking of the perfect code name since he first decided to join the Bangtan Boys.

“V!” he exclaimed quickly.

Jin was surprised by Tae’s sudden response. “Okay then, V-ssi, let’s head back. I’ll introduce you to everyone.”

Tae followed Jin into the other room. There was a blonde guy lying on a couch.

“That’s Suga. He has Dissociative Identity Disorder. When he gets really stressed or angry, his alter comes out. Suga is usually able to keep him under wraps, but he’s pretty good at fighting monsters. Hopefully you don’t have to meet him off the field.”

Tae frowned. “Have you ever met him off the field?”

Jin shook his head. “No. And I’m glad.”

They walked to the kitchen, where two younger men were chatting over lunch. One’s hair was dark, almost plum, and the other was silvery-lavender. The one with dark hair kept his eyes down shyly.

“Jin-hyung, who is this?” the other asked.

“This is our newest member. His code name is V.”

The lavender-haired man stuck out his hand. “I’m Jimin.”

Tae shook his hand happily.

“This is our maknae, Jungkook. He’s being a bit shy right now.”

Jungkook raised his eyes for a second to acknowledge Tae.

“Okay, you two enjoy your lunch. Hyung will finish introducing V to everyone,” Jin said.

“Okay, Jin-hyung. See you later, V-ssi,” Jimin said.

Jin led Tae down a skinny hallway. It opened into another room, but there was no one in it. They headed up a rickety old staircase and entered a room.

“RM? Are you in here?” Jin called.

“Is that you, Jin-hyung?” a voice replied.

“Yes. I have a new member for you to meet.”

There was some rustling, then a man with dark blonde hair appeared.

“This is V-ssi.”

RM shook Tae’s hand. “V is a weird name,” he said.

Jin laughed. “You’re one to talk.”

RM rolled his eyes.

“Well, that’s RM, let’s go meet someone else,” Jin said awkwardly.

He led Tae out of the room.

“So, who’s next, sunbae?” he asked.

Jin laughed. “You don’t have to call me sunbae. Jin-ssi for now. After you’ve had more experience on the field, you can call me hyung. Actually, how old are you?”

“I’m 22,” Tae said.

Jin thought for a moment. “You’re the same age as Jimin.”

He led Tae back to the kitchen. Jimin and Jungkook were still talking to each other.

“Have either of you seen J-Hope?” he asked.

Jungkook nodded. “He went out earlier this morning. He hasn’t come back yet.”

Jin frowned. “Did he say where he was going?”

Jungkook shook his head.

“I’ll just call him then.” He got out his phone and called J-Hope. “Hobi-ya, where are you?”

He listened for a moment.

“Oh, that’s nice of you. We have a new member though.” He paused. “Do you want some ramen, V-ssi?”

Tae nodded happily.

“That’s a yes. Thank you, Hobi-ya.”

Jimin and Jungkook looked at each other with wide eyes.

“J-Hope-hyung is buying ramen?” Jimin asked with bright eyes.

Jin nodded. “He noticed that we were out of ramen and decided to get some more for us.”

Jimin clapped his hands.

“J-Hope-hyung is the best,” Jungkook said.

Jin looked hurt for a moment. He slapped Jungkook’s shoulder a few times. Jungkook just laughed.

Jin turned away. “Have fun with these guys, V-ssi. I’m going to my room.”

Tae sat down next to Jimin and watched Jin leave. “So, what do you guys do?” he asked.

Jungkook suddenly became shy again.

Jimin laughed. “We’re the strongest in the group, right, Kookie-ga?”

Jungkook nodded slowly.

“I like to take care of ghosts and specters with my iron machete. Jungkook typically doesn’t deal with intangible things. He has a flask of holy water for vampires, along with a wooden stake,” Jimin said.

“What about you, V-ssi? Have you ever killed a monster?”

Tae shook his head. “I’ve never really met any monsters that were bad enough to kill.”

Jungkook frowned. “But you have met monsters,” he said.

Tae swallowed. “Uh, yeah. One of my neighbors lived with a ghost. He was friendly, I guess. There were a few werewolves that went to my school, too.”

Jimin and Jungkook looked at each other.

“It is Daegu satoori, I thought so!” Jimin exclaimed, looking at Jungkook.

Tae frowned. “What do you mean by that?”

Jimin waved it off. “It’s nothing.”

Jungkook nodded. “Yeah, don’t worry about that. I can’t believe I didn’t recognize your satoori earlier. Suga-hyung’s from Daegu too.”

Tae smiled. “Really? That’s cool. He was asleep when I met him.”

Jimin shook his head. “Yeah, that’s Suga-hyung. It’s not because he’s lazy, though.”

Tae looked in the direction of the couch that Suga was sleeping on.

“It’s because of his alter.”

Jungkook nodded in agreement. “Agust D uses up a lot of Suga-hyung’s adrenaline. Suga-hyung gets so tired because of it.”

Tae frowned. “That must be pretty tough.”

Jimin shrugged. “He deals with it very well. When he’s not tired, he’s happy. He’s always hanging out with J-Hope-hyung. Those two are like human sunshine together.”

Tae smiled to himself. Suga sounded like someone he could get along with well. He looked forward to meeting him when he woke up.

\- End Chapter 1 -


	2. Home

Jimin and Jungkook continued talking to Tae about the other members. Suddenly, there was a loud honk from outside. Jimin and Jungkook got up and dragged Tae out. There was a big black truck parked outside the station, and a skinny man with bronze-colored hair was grabbing bags from the back.

“This is V-ssi,” Jimin said, pushing Tae forward.

The man turned around and smiled. “Hello! I’m J-Hope. Nice to finally meet you, V-ssi.”

He put down the bag he was holding and shook Tae’s hand. He seemed bright and happy. Tae looked forward to working with him. He grabbed some bags and helped Hobi take them inside.

“So, what made you decide to come to Seoul?” Hobi asked after they were done unloading the truck.

“Well, I really wanted to be a monster hunter. I had heard about you guys a lot, and I just wanted to join you,” Tae replied.

Hobi smiled brightly. “We’re glad to have you,” he said.

Jin came into the kitchen and patted Hobi on the back. “Thanks for going shopping, Hope-ah.”

“It’s no problem, really. Has everyone met V-ssi already?”

Jin thought for a moment. “Well, Suga was asleep when V-ssi first came in. I don’t think he’s up yet.”

Hobi nodded. “It’s best to let him wake up on his own,” he said to Tae.

RM came in and grabbed a bowl of ramen. “The rumors were true,” he whispered. “Thanks, J-Hope-hyung.” He started boiling some water.

“Suga-hyung! Did you sleep well?” Hobi said suddenly.

Tae turned and saw Suga standing in the doorway, rubbing his eyes.

“Hobi-ya, where did you go this morning?” Suga asked, slurring his words.

“I went shopping, hyung. I noticed that we were running low on some things,” Hobi replied.

“Ah,” Suga said.

He grabbed a bowl and used the rest of the water that RM had boiled. “Thanks, Hobi-ya.”

Everyone sat at the table in silence while they ate their ramen.

“So, who are you?” Suga eventually asked Tae.

Tae set down his chopsticks. “I’m V, from Daegu.”

Suga nodded. “Daegu, huh? I’m from Daegu as well. What made you come here?”

Tae smiled. “I just really wanted to be a monster hunter with you guys,” he said happily.

Suga laughed. “You seem very excited about that. Have you ever killed a monster before?”

Tae shook his head. He couldn’t help but admire the familiar sound of Daegu satoori.

“You’ve never killed a monster, but you want to be a monster hunter? That’s gutsy, kid.” Suga seemed impressed, which gave Tae a bit of confidence.

“I’ll be learning from the best, right, Suga-ssi?” he said with a smiled.

Suga nodded. “Definitely the best.”

“Well, now that we’ve all been introduced, we’ll need to figure out the rooming situation,” Jin said.

Jungkook, who had been silently eating his ramen next to Jimin, blurted out a sudden response.  
“V-ssi can sleep in our room. With Jimin-hyung and I.”

Jimin looked at Jungkook, then at everyone else.

“Yeah,” he said in agreement.

Jin shrugged. “Okay then, V-ssi. Looks like you’ll be staying with those two. Where did you leave your suitcase?”

Tae looked around. “I left it by the couch, when I first came in,” he said, pointing.

Jungkook got up. “I’ll carry it up to our room.” He left the kitchen and grabbed Tae’s suitcase. He went down the hall and was out of sight.

Jimin frowned. “He was so shy a few minutes ago.”

He stood up. “I guess I can show you where the room is, V-ssi.”

Tae followed Jimin out of the kitchen. “What was that all about?” he asked.

Jimin looked back at Tae. “What do you mean?”

Tae shrugged. “I don’t know. You seemed a little upset when Jungkook-ssi offered your room.”

Jimin smiled. “Don’t be silly. I don’t mind you in our room. It’s just that we only have two beds.”

Tae frowned. “I guess someone will have to share.”

Jimin sighed. “Yeah, I guess so.”

They went up the stairs and past the room that RM had been in. They went to the very end of the hallway and entered the last room. They found Jungkook rifling through Tae’s suitcase.

“What are you doing?” Jimin asked, arms crossed.

Jungkook spun around and laughed nervously. “Just unpacking for V-ssi. You don’t have an impressive selection of clothes.”

Jimin slammed Tae’s suitcase shut. “Why do you care so much?”

Jungkook shrugged. “He’s gonna be our new roommate. I want to make sure that he’s comfortable. I just thought he might like to go shopping.”

Tae brightened up. He was no longer worried about the fact that Jungkook had been snooping through his things. “I’d love to go shopping,” he said.

Jimin sighed. “V-ssi, would you leave Jungkook and I alone for a moment?”

Tae nodded. “Sure, Jimin-ssi. Just don’t go through my things anymore, okay?” He shut the door behind him as he left. He heard raised voices, so he decided to go back down to the kitchen.

“What happened to Jimin and Kookie?” RM asked.

Tae shrugged. “Jungkook-ssi was going through my things, and now Jimin-ssi is scolding him.”

Jin frowned. “Jungkook? Going through your things? That’s not very hospitable of him.”

He stood up and made to leave the kitchen.

“Hyung, don’t worry about it,” Suga said, holding back laughter. “I’m sure Jimin can handle it.”

Jin sat back down. “I hope so. Jungkook should know better.”

“He’s just following the example of his hyungjae,” Hobi said, nudging Suga.

Suga hit him back and laughed. “Yeah, like that time I wore a pair of his underwear.”

“And he turned around and wore one of yours,” Hobi continued.

The pair laughed their heads off for a while.

“Yeah, let’s try to set good examples for our maknae from now on, okay?” RM said.

Hobi and Suga laughed some more, then nodded in agreement. Jimin and Jungkook came into the kitchen moments later.

“I hope you’ve learned your lesson, Jungkook-ah,” Jin said sternly.

Jungkook nodded his head shamefully.

“Jungkook did have a point, though,” Jimin said. “You really need to update your wardrobe. It’s like you came straight from a farm.”

Tae frowned. “I did come from a farm.”

Jungkook nodded. “Yeah, that’s exactly why I was looking through V-ssi’s suitcase. I wanted to make sure he was prepared. He doesn’t even have any weapons.”

Jin stood up. “That’s it. We’re going shopping right now.”

Suga groaned.

“Do we all have to go?” he asked, slurping up the last of his lunch.

Jin nodded. “Of course! We need everyone’s input on how to be prepared for monster hunting.”

“But I don’t even do that much!” Suga protested.

“Well, what would Agust D do?” Jin said with a shrug.

Hobi stood up suddenly. “Jin-hyung, don’t say things like that.” He turned to Suga. “C’mon, hyung. It’ll be fun.”

Suga sighed. “Okay, I’ll go. But I’m not driving us there.”

Jin shrugged. “Fine. We’ll just have RM drive. Is that okay with you, RM?”

“Yeah, Jin-hyung. That’s fine,” RM replied, grabbing his coat from the closet.

Hobi got the keys out of his pocket and handed them to RM.

“Alright, everyone! Let’s go shopping,” Jin said, pointing to the front.

They all grabbed their coats and went to the truck. RM got into the driver’s seat and Jin sat next to him. Hobi and Suga sat behind them. Jungkook and Jimin climbed into the bed of the truck and helped Tae in with them. They drove for a little while until they reached an open mall.

“Okay, let’s help V-ssi get ready for monster hunting,” Jin said as he got out of the truck.

They shopped for hours until everyone felt that Tae was sufficiently prepared for hunting monsters. They put everything in the bed of the truck and headed back to their station. When they arrived, there was a man waiting outside their door.

\- End Chapter 2 -


	3. Trainee Days

The man brightened up at the sight of them. “Oh, thank goodness you’re finally here,” he said.

“Guys, help V-ssi take in his things. Jin-hyung, stay with me,” RM said.

Everyone else grabbed Tae’s things and went in. They went up to the room and put everything away.

“What was that man doing here?” Tae asked, worried.

“He probably has some sort of monster problem,” Jimin said with a shrug.

Tae’s heart was thumping. “I just got here though. I can’t fight monsters yet, right?”

Hobi smiled reassuringly. “Don’t worry, V-ssi. I’m sure RM won’t make you fight any monsters.”

“You might just watch us do our thing,” Jungkook said, patting Tae on the back. “You might learn some things.”

Suga rolled his eyes. “If I were in charge, I wouldn’t even bring you along yet. If you don’t know how to defend yourself, then you’re always at risk.”

Jimin nodded. “Suga-hyung is right about that. We can’t babysit and fight monsters at the same time.”

RM and Jin came in and called them down to the kitchen.  
“Based on what that man told us, it sounds like we’re dealing with a specter,” Jin said. He looked up at Jimin. “That’s your strong point, right?”

Jimin nodded. “Just one specter? That shouldn’t be too bad. Most of you wouldn’t have to come.”

“That’s true. I think just you and I should go,” RM said.

Hobi nodded in approval. “While you guys are taking care of that, we can give V-ssi some basic training.”

“That would be great,” RM said. “Alright, Jiminie. Grab your machete and we’ll go.”

Jimin headed to the closet right outside the kitchen. He opened it and Tae saw that it was full of all sorts of weapons. He even caught a glimpse of a case filled with silver bullets. His eyes widened. He began to think about going home once again. He looked away from the closet and told himself that he would be fine. Jimin grabbed what he was looking for and shut the door. He and RM left the station and Jin turned to face Tae.

“So, you need some training, huh? I’ll let Jungkookie and Hope-ah take care of that. They’re probably some of our best hunters.”

Suga nodded in agreement.

Jin saw his motion and shot him a sideways glance. “Unless a certain someone would like to help,” Jin said.

Hobi frowned. “Jin-hyung, you really shouldn’t be encouraging that. Suga-hyung doesn’t need to be going back and forth all willy-nilly.”

Jin raised his hands in defense. “It was just a suggestion. He doesn’t have to if he doesn’t want to.”

Suga sighed in response. “I’ll just watch and see if I can make any input.”

Jin nodded. “That’s fine, Suga-neun. Just try not to get in their way.”

Suga rolled his eyes and followed the others out to the backyard of the station. It wasn’t really a backyard, but it was a yard behind the station, so that’s what they called it. They had set up targets and dummies around the yard as a sort of practice area.

“So, V-ssi, have you ever shot a gun before?” Jungkook asked, holding out a small handgun.

Tae looked at it warily. He shook his head to signal that it was his first time. “I’ve never really had to, I guess,” he said.

Jungkook shrugged. “Okay then. The most important thing about guns is to never aim it at someone unless you need to. Try your best to keep it aimed down.”

He handed the gun to Tae, who grabbed it cautiously. “There’s no need to be scared of it, V-ssi.”

Tae laughed nervously as he adjusted his grip on the gun. “Now what?” he asked once the gun was comfortable in his hands.

“Start by turning off the safety, right here,” Jungkook said, pushing a little button. “Now you definitely don’t want to aim it at anyone.”

Tae lowered the gun so that it was pointing at his feet.

“You don’t want to shoot your feet, either,” Jungkook said, lifting the gun a bit. “Now, cock the gun to load the bullet into the chamber.” He pointed at the slide. “Pull this back until it clicks.”

Tae did as he was told, and Jungkook seemed a tad bit surprised.

“You’re a bit stronger than I thought,” he said with an approving nod. “Now, the bullet is in the chamber. Chong, jojun, balsa!”

Tae raised the gun and squeezed one eye shut as he tried to aim.

“Your stance is all wrong. And keep both eyes open,” Jungkook said. He stood next to Tae and acted out the proper shooting stance. “You have to put your weight towards the gun, to brace yourself for the kick. Not that this gun has much kick.”

Tae leaned forward a bit and raised the gun again. He kept both of his eyes open and aimed at the target in front of him. He gripped the gun tightly and pulled the trigger. The shot echoed around the yard.

“Lower the gun, and I’ll go see how you did,” Jungkook said.

Tae lowered the gun and watched Jungkook approach the target. Jungkook examined the target for a moment, then Tae heard him start to laugh. His laugh almost sounded evil.

“What’s so funny, Kookie?” Suga asked from his chair on the porch.

“He missed the target completely. There’s no bullet mark,” Jungkook exclaimed, still laughing his head off.  
Tae’s head sunk in shame.

“Really?” he asked, disappointment prominent in his voice.

“Hey, don’t sweat it,” Hobi said comfortingly. “It was your first try.”

Tae smiled. “Let me try again,” he said to Jungkook.

Jungkook came back and stood behind Tae. “Go right ahead.”

Tae raised the gun and did his best to aim. He wasn’t sure what had gone wrong the first time, so he didn’t know how to fix it. He decided that he had aimed better, and he squeezed the trigger. He lowered the gun, and Jungkook went to check. Tae frowned when he heard Jungkook’s awful laughter.

“Nothing!” Jungkook exclaimed, keeling over in amusement.

“Maybe guns aren’t your strong point,” Hobi said, picking up a baseball bat.

He walked over and traded the gun for the bat. “Just head over to that dummy and try to knock it off its stand.”

Tae nodded, determination in his eyes. He approached the dummy and readied the bat. He took a deep breath and swung with all his might. The dummy went flying, and it crashed through the roof of a nearby house. Tae winced. Hobi slowly grabbed the bat from Tae, dazed by his incredible swing.

“Nice job, V-ssi,” he said.

Tae looked at Hobi. “What about that house? Will the roof be okay?” he asked.

Hobi just laughed. “It’s okay, V-ssi. All the buildings around here are in the same condition as ours.”

“Except ours is actually safe to live in, thanks to me,” Suga called.

“We’ll just have to go get our dummy back later,” Hobi said. “That was a good hit, though. You should stick with the bat.”

Tae smiled. “Really? You think this will be a good weapon against monsters?”

Hobi shook his head in amusement. “You can use that one for skeletons. We also have an iron one for ghosts and things. Maybe we can even get a silver one.”

Tae laughed, trying to hide the fact that his eyes had grown wide. “I don’t know about that. What good would a silver bat do?”

“The way you swing? It’ll do a whole lot of good,” Hobi said.

Jin came out into the yard moments later. “Hey guys, our specter hunters are back. Pack it up for now.”

Hobi took the bat from Tae’s hands and carried it inside. Jungkook followed behind him with the gun and bullets. Suga got out of his chair slowly and followed Tae in. They all sat around the kitchen table and listened to RM and Jimin’s story.

\- End Chapter 3 -


	4. Never Walk Alone

Tae spent the next few months at the station training. He would train with a different member every other week, working on various skills needed for monster hunting. He did his best to impress everyone, and he was able to learn quickly. He impressed Jungkook the most, and Jungkook enjoyed training him.

“You know, V-ssi, I’ve been meaning to tell you something,” Jungkook said when they had gone out to train.

“What is it?” Tae asked.

“It’s about how I got into monster hunting.”

Tae sat down in the grass with Jungkook. “Yeah?” he said, letting Jungkook know that he was interested.

Jungkook nodded. “I was only 16. I was walking home after school one day, and I decided to take a shortcut through a dark alley. I wasn’t thinking about monsters when I decided to do that.”

Tae nodded. “Sometimes you just forget that there are monsters.”

Jungkook laughed. “Not anymore. Anyways, I went down the dark alley, and I had a weird feeling. I looked up and saw a dark figure sitting on a windowsill. I wasn’t sure what it was, but I looked around for something I could use to defend myself. I pulled a plank of wood off a boarded-up window.”

Tae leaned forward in interest. “What was it?”

Jungkook smirked. “It was a vampire.”

Tae gasped.

“It jumped down from the windowsill and hissed at me. I took the sharp end of my plank of wood and jabbed it in the vampire’s chest. The vampire coughed and collapsed onto the ground.”

Tae stared at Jungkook in awe. “You killed it just like that?”

Jungkook smirked again. “I ran out of the alley and headed to the closest church. I told the pastor about the vampire, and he handed me a flask of holy water.” Jungkook held up the flask that he carried everywhere. “I went back to the alley and saw that another vampire had come and taken out the plank. Fortunately, I had my flask of holy water, and I splashed both them in the face. They screamed in pain as their skin burned off. When they dropped dead, I saw that I had missed the vampire’s heart earlier. So, when I went home, I memorized the location of the heart.” Jungkook placed his hand over Tae’s heart. “I can kill anything,” he whispered.

Tae felt his heart beating hard. Jungkook moved his hand from Tae’s chest.

“Did I scare you?” he asked with a smile.

Tae laughed nervously. “Have you ever killed a werewolf?” he asked.

Jungkook frowned. “No, I haven’t. But, I’m prepared to.” He pulled out a silver knife and held it out for Tae.

Tae felt his heart beating harder. “Is that real silver?”

Jungkook nodded. “This knife was pretty hard to come by.”

He put the knife away and cleared his throat. “Let me continue the story. The next day, when I was walking home from school, there was someone waiting for me by the alley. It was Jimin. He asked me if I had killed the vampires. I said yes, and he said: ‘Daebak.’ He told me that he had been keeping track of the vampires for a while, and he had been waiting for the right moment to kill them. He patted me on the back and asked if I wanted to go to Seoul with him. I asked him why, and he told me about the Bangtan Boys. I said that I would have to transfer schools. He was so surprised. ‘You’re still in school?’ he asked. I could tell that he was impressed. We got train tickets to Seoul, and then we joined the Bangtan Boys. I graduated in 2015.”

Tae smiled. “Wow. You’re so good at monster hunting, Jungkook-ssi.”

Jungkook shrugged. “I wouldn’t have gotten into it without Jimin-hyung, though. He’s the real reason I’m as good as I am.”

Tae smiled. “That’s cool. I definitely don’t have any stories like that up my sleeve.”

Jungkook laughed. “Probably not, considering you grew up around ‘nice’ monsters.”

Tae couldn’t help but laugh at Jungkook’s tone of disbelief. Jungkook looked at Tae intently. Tae frowned at his sudden change of mood.

“V-ssi, I’d like to be on a first-name basis with you, you know?” he said.

Tae nodded. “That’s alright with me.”

Jungkook smiled. “Jungkook is actually not a code name. My name really is Jeon Jungkook.”

Tae laughed. “I can’t believe that you don’t have a code name. When I first met you, I honestly thought they were calling you ‘Nationwide’ or something.”

Jungkook laughed and slapped Tae’s arm lightly. “So, what about you?”

“My name is Kim Taehyung,” Tae said.

“Taehyung-hyung is going to be such a pain in the butt,” Jungkook said, rolling his eyes.

Tae gave Jungkook a playful shove. “You can just use Tae. That’s what my family calls me.”

“Tae-hyung? It sounds like I’m just saying your name, though. I don’t want people to think I have no respect for my hyungjae.”

Tae shrugged. “That’s your problem, Jungkookie.”

Jungkook waved it off. “I’ll figure it out eventually. Let’s get to training.”

Tae got up and got into his sparring stance. Jungkook had recently began training him in hand-to-hand combat. He had impressed Jungkook with his incredible strength, and he worried that it might eventually draw suspicion. So far, his strength had only brought him and Jungkook closer. He thought that he might be able to tell Jungkook about his secret soon.

“C’mon Tae-Tae-hyung, you can do better than that,” Jungkook said, easily dodging Tae’s swings.

Hobi poked his head out of the back door of the station. “Hey guys, we’ve got a job,” he said.

Jungkook smiled widely at Tae and dragged him along. “Guys, I think we should bring V-hyung along with us,” Jungkook said.

RM looked at Jungkook’s determined face and shrugged. “If you think he’s ready, then we’ll bring him along.”

Jungkook brightened up at the words.

“But,” RM continued, “if he gets into trouble, it’s your responsibility.”

Jungkook nodded intently. “That’s fine with me.”

Tae saw Jimin look away after releasing a quick huff of laughter. Jungkook helped Tae look through the weapons closet after they were briefed on the monster. Tae grabbed an iron baseball bat and gripped it tightly. Jungkook just laughed as he filled his flask of holy water. Hobi grabbed a sawed-off shotgun and loaded it with rock salt. Once everyone was ready, they got into the car and Suga sped across the streets of Seoul. As they drove along, Tae noticed a small group of skeletons making their way towards a gated neighborhood.

“Hey, Jungkookie, I just saw some skeletons back there,” Tae said.

Jungkook looked at the road behind them. “Where?”

“Right by that neighborhood we passed.”

Jungkook knocked on the back window of the truck, and RM opened it.

“What’s up, Jungkook-ah?” he asked.

“V-hyung says he saw some skeletons heading towards that gated neighborhood.”

RM frowned. “I guess Suga-hyung will have to take him back there once we get to our job,” he said. “Is that alright with you, Suga-hyung?”

Suga nodded from the driver’s seat. “How many skeletons did you see?”

Tae thought for a moment. “Only about five or six,” he replied.

“Sounds like a piece of cake. You’ll have no trouble taking them out, V-ssi,” RM said.

Tae looked down at the bat in his hands and furrowed his brows with confidence. “Yeah, I’ll take those skeletons out so fast, they won’t even know what hit them.”

“That’s the spirit,” Jungkook said, giving Tae a slap on the thigh.

Suga turned the truck towards a park. The blue sky was reflected by a beautiful lake. A few people stood by the shore, fishing. Deeper into the park, Tae could see smoke and fire in the trees. Everyone got out of the truck, and Tae made his way to the front.

“Good luck out there, V-ssi,” Jin said with a wave.

Suga pulled the truck out of the park and headed back towards the neighborhood.

\- End Chapter 4 -


	5. Boy Meets Skeletons

When they arrived at the neighborhood, they saw that the gate had been torn down. They stepped over the bent iron and looked around.

“Keep your eyes open, V-ssi. Though, skeletons aren’t very good at hiding,” Suga said.

Tae nodded intently. He tightened his grip on his bat as they walked forward. They came to a split in the road. “Which way do you think they went?” Tae asked.

Suga shrugged. “Look for the wreckage. Skeletons do a lot of damage.”

Tae looked down each direction. He saw many overturned trash cans one way and determined that that was where the skeletons had gone. He and Suga headed down the street, looking around for signs of trouble.

“Maybe they already passed through the neighborhood,” Suga muttered after a while.

Tae stopped suddenly, and Suga frowned.

“What’s up, V-ssi?” he asked.

“I thought I heard something,” he said, concentrating hard.

Suga frowned harder. “I didn’t hear anything.”

Suga started walking again, and Tae refocused on listening to his surroundings. He was pretty sure he could hear the quiet clinking of bones, but there was no way he could convince Suga of that without revealing his secret. He sighed and followed Suga, gripping his bat tightly ad looking around constantly.

“We should be hearing way more commotion since we’re dealing with skeletons,” Suga said. “This is very unusual.”

Tae frowned. He looked around some more, not sure what the skeletons were doing. “Maybe they’re trying to make a sneak attack,” he suggested.

Suga snorted at Tae’s comment. “Skeletons don’t sneak attack. They tend to blitz.”

“What’s a blitz?” Tae asked, not liking the sound of it.

“They get in and out fast. That’s why they make such big messes. Skeletons are light on their feet. They’re quiet on their own, but when they all move together, they make a pretty huge commotion.”

“So, a sneak attack wouldn’t make any sense for skeletons?”

“The only reason for skeletons to pull a sneak attack is if they are under someone else’s control,” Suga said. “You really should do more research on monsters, V-ssi.”

Tae looked at his feet sheepishly, recalling the day he decided to skip the section on skeletons and read about specters instead. He quickly moved his eyes back up to the rooftops when he heard another sound. Suga noticed something near the front patio of a house and went to investigate it. He crouched down to get a better look at it. He cursed under his breath when he realized what it was. He turned back towards Tae, a worried look on his face. He made his way back to him.

“V-ssi, I just found evidence that those skeletons are under someone’s control,” Suga said. He looked around anxiously. “I really wish I hadn’t come here alone,” he muttered.

Tae smiled comfortingly. “I’m here with you, Suga-ssi. I’ve got my bat.”

Suga laughed. “No, I was talking about Hope-ah. He’s like my anchor.”

Tae opened his mouth in understanding. “You’re talking about your disorder, right? Yeah, I probably can’t help you with that.”

Suga shrugged. “I think I’ll be okay though. Depends on whatever is controlling the skeletons.”

They continued to walk down the street, both with their eyes constantly watching for danger. Tae gripped his bat tightly, making his knuckles white. Suga made sure to stay close to Tae and his bat. Tae heard the same clinking sound, but it was much closer. He looked up just in time to see a skeleton jumping towards them from the nearest roof.

“Watch out, Suga-ssi!” he shouted, pushing Suga out of the way with a little more force than he intended.

He swung his bat hard against the skeleton’s skull. The skeleton collapsed onto the ground, and Tae stood there for a moment, adrenaline rushing through him. He turned to look for Suga, who was lying on the ground, eyes wide with shock. Tae helped him up.

“Are you okay, Suga-ssi?” Tae asked.

Suga blinked his eyes, still a bit dazed. He nodded slowly. “I’m fine; but call me hyung.”

“What?”

“You just saved my life, V-ga. I’d say you and I are on a more personal level now.”

Tae smiled. “It wasn’t a big deal, hyung.”

“It was for me. Now, what happened to the other skeletons?” Suga looked down at the dead skeleton, frowning.

“I’m not sure. I haven’t seen anything else. They’re probably waiting on some other rooftops, though,” Tae said.

Suga nodded in agreement. “Alright, keep your eyes up. Let’s keep going.”

They moved slowly down the street, watching the rooftops for any sign of skeletons. As they made their way through the neighborhood, they heard a loud scream. They ran towards the sound and saw that the rest of the skeletons had broken into a home and were destroying it. Tae froze for a moment, staring at the chaos. Suga gave him a hard shove.

“You’ve got the bat, go do something,” he hissed.

Tae blinked, then ran into the house. He swung the bat towards every skull in his sight. He checked all the rooms and found a woman crouched on the floor in fear. Tae put down his bat and placed a hand on her shoulder. She jumped at his touch.

“What happened?” Tae asked quietly.

“I- I’m not sure. My husband was later than usual today, and I was worried. I tried to call him, but there was no response. He finally came home a few minutes ago, but he was different.”

“What do you mean, different?”

“His voice was different, and he had glowing yellow eyes. The skeletons burst in, and he disappeared. I just ran up here to protect myself. Thank you for saving me.”

Tae smiled and helped her up. “Not a problem, ma’am. We’ll try to get you husband back as well. That sounds like a classic ghost possession.”

The woman’s eyes widened in worry. “What will happen to him?”

Tae shrugged sadly. “I’m not sure. Most possessions end with the death of the host, but I’m sure there is a way to safely remove the ghost.”

Suga entered the room. “V-ga, what’s going on here?”

Tae looked at Suga with a serious face. “It was possession, hyung.”

Suga’s eyes widened. “Where’s the ghost?”

“It left with the host. Her husband,” Tae replied, gesturing to the woman.

“Please, help him if you can. I want him back safe.”

“Why would a ghost possess your husband?” Suga asked her.

She shrugged. “I don’t know how possession works.”

“Clearly the ghost wanted to hurt you. It used your husband to gain control over those skeletons,” Suga said.

The woman looked shocked. “Why would it want to hurt me?”

Suga frowned. “Do you know anyone who died recently?”

The woman thought for a moment. “I don’t know anyone.”

Tae frowned at Suga. “What are you thinking, hyung?”

“I thought there might be someone who blamed her for their death, or just had a huge grudge.”

The woman shook her head. “There’s no one like that.”

Suga’s phone started to ring. He took it out and cursed quietly, checking to see if the woman had heard him.

“Hey, RM.”

He looked up at the ceiling as RM spoke to him.

“No, we’re fine. We ran into something bigger than we expected.”

There was another short pause.  
“Those skeletons were being controlled by a ghost. It possessed someone just to do it. The skeletons attacked the wife of the person who was possessed. We’re trying to figure out what’s going on.”

Suga listened for a while. He looked at Tae and the woman.

“Okay, RM-ah. We’re on our way.”

He hung up and put the phone in his pocket.

“Ma’am, if you would be willing to come with us, we need to head back to the station. Everyone will do their best to help you.”

The woman nodded, and they left the house. They walked back to the truck and went to pick up the others.

\- End Chapter 5 -


	6. Epiphany

The monster hunters gathered in the kitchen to discuss the woman’s situation.

“She’s absolutely positive that she didn’t piss anyone off before they died?” Jungkook asked.

“She says she doesn’t know anyone that has died recently,” Suga said, shooting Jungkook a look of disapproval.

“Watch your mouth around patrons,” he added.

Jungkook’s hand flew to his mouth as he turned towards the other room, where the woman was watching the news.

“Sorry, hyung,” he muttered.

Tae heard the woman get off the couch and turned to see her enter the kitchen.

“Excuse me, guys,” she began. “I think you should see this.”

She led them back to the main room, where a news story was on.

“Mere hours ago, a young student was hit by a drunk driver. Footage from a nearby store has been found. We’ll play that footage now.”

The hunters watched as the student crossed the road. A truck raced around the corner and flattened the poor boy. Tae winced and turned away.

“The driver’s identity is still unknown, but police are working on it as we speak.”

The woman turned off the TV and turned to face the boys. “That was my husband’s truck. I’d recognize it anywhere. He killed that poor student.”

RM looked at Jin with a frown. “Would something as innocent as that cause the kid to become a ghost?”

Jin shook his head. “No, ghosts usually come from more violent deaths. That includes things like murders, animal attacks, and sui-” Jin cut himself off.

RM’s eyes widened. “Do you think it could be?”

Jin shrugged. “What else could it be?”

RM pointed at Suga. “Find out everything you can about that student. J-Hope can stay with you. Tae, you come with the rest of us. We need to find this guy.”

Suga went into a room behind the stairs. J-Hope followed him. Tae caught a glimpse of pin boards covered in maps and colorful thumbtacks. He also saw a huge file cabinet, with an ancient bestiary sitting on top of it.

“Woah,” he whispered to himself.

He turned his attention back to the leader, who cleared his throat.

“Ma’am, if you don’t mind, we need to visit the location of the accident. After that, we need you to help us figure out where your husband might be.”

The woman nodded her head. “That’s okay. I’ll stay in the truck.”

RM smiled reassuringly.

“That’s great. Let’s get going. Don’t forget to call if you find anything,” he called to the others under the stairs.

They grabbed some weapons and flashlights, then headed to the truck. They drove to the sight of the accident. There were still some forensics on the scene. RM walked up to the police line and showed the officer a badge.

“This is a drunk accident. What are monster hunters doing here?” the officer asked suspiciously.

RM put away the badge. “We have reason to believe that this young man has become a ghost. We need to check if our information is accurate.”

The officer shrugged and lifted the police line. “Go right ahead. Try not to mess up the scene.”

They approached the body and Tae wrinkled his nose at the strong smell. It made him anxious, and he could feel himself starting to drool. He covered his mouth and turned away from the group. He felt a hand on his shoulder.  
“You’ll need a better stomach in the monster hunting business,” Jungkook said.

Tae laughed and wiped the drool off his face.

“I’m fine,” he said, turning around.

Jin held out his hand to Jimin. “Hand me your machete,” he said.

Jimin did so and Jin pressed the side of the blade against the dead student’s bare wrist.

“Jeogiyo, officer? How long has he been dead?” Jin asked.

The officer checked his watch. “About two and a half hours.”

“Thank you,” Jin said. He looked down at his own watch. “Two minutes,” he muttered.

“What are you doing, Hyung?” RM asked.

“I’m checking if he’s become a ghost.”

“How does that work?” Jimin asked.

“If he’s a ghost, the iron will burn his skin. I’m holding it on for two and a half minutes, based on how long ago he died.”

“And then what?” RM asked, crouching down next to Jin.

“After the time is up, we’ll see how bad the burn is. That tells us if he’s a ghost, and how powerful he is.” He checked his watch and removed the blade.

The burn on the student’s wrist had become a deep red with black, charred skin around it. Jin’s eyes widened.

“What does that mean, Hyung?” Jungkook asked.

Jin handed Jimin his machete. “It’s a category 7.”

RM looked back at the truck.

“We need to keep a close eye on our patron. She’s in danger. I’ll let Suga know as well. Tae, will you go give our patron some company,” he said, pulling out his phone.

Tae headed to the truck and got in with the woman.

“What’s going on over there?” she asked.

“We just found out that we’re dealing with a category 7 ghost. And, if you don’t know, that’s powerful,” Tae said.

The woman looked terrified. “Will my husband be okay?”

Tae smiled reassuringly. “Don’t worry. We’ll take care of it. He’ll be fine.”

The woman sighed, but Tae could tell that she was still on edge. The smell of worry was overwhelming. He looked out the window and saw that the others were making their way to the truck. They got in, and RM turned to Tae and the woman.

“We’re going to try and find this guy. Can you give me your exact address?”

The woman nodded and handed him a business card. “I work from home.”

“Thank you, ma’am. We’ll send a few of our guys to your house to check on things there. The rest of us will check out all of the schools in the area.”

He put the truck in gear and drove away from the scene. They drove to the neighborhood where the woman lived. RM got out and handed the business card to them. Tae watched them head into the neighborhood. RM got back into the car.

“V-ssi, I want you to stay with our patron. Keep her safe,” he said.

Tae nodded intently. “Of course, RM-ssi.”

“Where’s the first school, Jin-hyung?” RM asked.

Jin pulled up the address on his phone and showed it to RM. RM put the truck in gear and headed towards the first school. When they arrived, RM reminded Tae to stay with the patron. Tae nodded, and watched them enter the school. He turned to the woman, who was staring up at the night sky.

“How are you feeling?” he asked kindly.

The woman blinked and turned to Tae. “I’m alright. I hope they find my husband soon.”

Tae looked down at the floor of the truck.

“Don’t worry,” he said.

He had no idea what was going to happen, and he felt bad for lying to the poor woman, but he didn’t want her to be any more upset. He looked up and saw the others coming out of the school. They got in and explained that they had been unsuccessful. Tae saw the woman look down sadly. They drove to the next school and tried again. Once again, they didn’t have any success.

“Where to this time?” RM asked, unable to hide the discouragement in his voice.

The smell of disappointment and fear invaded Tae’s nose, and he looked over at the woman. Her face was downtrodden, and she was crying silently.

“We’ll find your husband, ma’am. And we’ll make sure that he stays safe, too. Don’t worry.”

RM glanced down in shame while he listened to Tae comforting the woman. Jin pulled up the next address, and they sped along. When they arrived at the school, RM’s phone fell out of his back pocket. The screen lit up with a picture of Suga, and Tae answered.

“Hello, Suga-hyung,” Tae said into the phone.

“Oh, hey V-ga,” Suga said.

“What’s up, hyung?” Tae asked, watching the others enter the building.

“I found some serious dirt on that student that was run over,” Suga said.

“Okay, shoot,” Tae said.

“I started with police records to see what the kid’s name was. They still haven’t posted anything about the accident, so I had to do some facial recognition. I looked through school records to find a match. Hope-ah helped me with that.”

“So, did you find him?” Tae asked.

“Yeah. His name was Jung Seojun. According to the school profile, he was very enthusiastic about black magic and other supernatural practices.”

“That’s suspicious,” Tae said with a frown.

“On top of that, I found records from multiple other cities of him attempting suicide,” Suga said.

Tae’s eyes widened. “He wanted to get hit? What’s this all about?”

“I don’t know, but this is some deep crap. Tell RM as soon as possible.”

“On it. Thanks, Suga-hyung.”

“No problem.”

\- End Chapter 6 -


	7. Lost

Tae hung up and got out of the truck. He completely forgot about the woman who had fallen asleep next to him. He locked the doors and ran into the building.

“RM-ssi! Suga-hyung just called,” Tae said when he found the others.

“Where’s our patron?” Jin asked.

Tae’s eyes widened. He cursed under his breath. “I forgot about her. She’s still in the truck.”

“Suga’s message better be very important, then,” Jin said.

“He found information about the student,” Tae said.

“That’s great,” RM said.

“Let’s get back to the truck and make sure our patron is okay,” Jin said.

They left the building and saw that she was not okay. The back door had been ripped off and thrown aside. The woman was gone.

“You’ve done it now, V-ssi,” Jin said.

RM grabbed his phone and called Suga. “We have a serious problem. Our patron is gone.”

“What happened?” Tae heard Suga exclaim.

“Someone decided to leave her alone,” RM said harshly, flashing a look at Tae.

“Crap, that’s really bad,” Suga said loudly.

Tae looked down at his feet. He noticed something glistening under the car, and he got down on his knees to investigate.

“Thanks, hyung. That information will be very usef- V-ssi, what are you doing?” RM asked, looking down at Tae’s behind.

“There’s something under here. I think it may help us find our ghost,” Tae said.

He sniffed the mysterious substance and recognized it immediately.

“It’s blood!” he called as he got out from under the truck. “There might be a trail. See if you can find any spots.”

RM squinted at Tae skeptically, then crouched down with Tae. Tae sniffed around the truck discreetly, trying to pick up a scent. Instead, he heard Jin call out.

“There’s blood here,” he said, gesturing wildly.

Tae and RM got up to check on Jin’s finding. There were a few specks of blood on the ground, but it seemed that they wouldn’t find any more.

“Well, she was clearly injured when the ghost took her,” RM said. “But it doesn't seem like a serious wound, given the amount of blood here.”

Tae frowned. “Well, at least we have a general direction,” he said, pointing. “What’s in that direction?”

RM squinted into the darkness. “I’m not sure.”

He put his phone back up to his ear.

“Are you still at the computer?”

There was a short pause, then RM continued.

“I need you to look up places that are west to northwest of this school.”

He looked back at the school while he waited for Suga to look it up.

“Really? That’s probably it, then. Thanks, hyung.”

He hung up and looked at Tae and Jin. “We’re going to our ghost’s home address.”

He got in the truck and Tae and Jin followed suit.

“What about the door, RM-ah?” Jin asked, looking back at the open space.

“We’ll worry about that after this job is done,” RM said, putting the truck in gear.

“What about Jimin-ssi? And Jungkookie?” Tae asked, remembering that they had been sent on a separate mission.

RM slammed hard on the brakes.

“We should probably get Suga and J-Hope, too,” he said as he turned the truck around. “But we’d better hurry. Who knows what he’s doing to our patron.”

They raced back to the woman’s house, and informed Jimin and Jungkook about the situation.

“Looks like there’s no time to waste,” Jungkook said.

“I hope Suga and J-Hope found some useful information,” Jimin added.

They sped to the condemned building and saw that something was very wrong. The front door had been ripped off and tossed aside, and all the windows were shattered. They got out of the truck and immediately began to search for their friends.

“Suga! J-Hope! Are you okay?” Jin called, his voice strained with worry.

Tae looked in the research room and saw that the computer had been destroyed. The bestiary was on fire, and Tae did his best to pat it down. He heard someone struggling to call for help as if they were gagged. He went down into the basement, which was full of tall, metal shelves, and saw Suga hanging by his feet from the ceiling. His eyes were wide with fear, and he had a ghostly band around his mouth that prevented him from speaking. His feet were attached to the ceiling by spectral chains as well. Tae called for the others, and they came down quickly.

“Oh, that is not good,” Jin said. He raced back up the stairs.

“Don’t worry, Suga-hyung,” RM said. “We’ll get you down.”

Suga’s face was slowly turning purple, and he struggled to keep his eyes open.  
Jin came back down the stairs with a very old sword.

“What is that for?” Tae asked.

Jin looked up at Suga. “We’ve got to get him down before he passes out. All the blood is rushing to his head.”

“But why a sword?” Tae questioned.

“This is a very common punishment that ghosts use, and this sword is part of the solution. We have to cut him down,” Jin said, holding the sword up to Suga’s mouth.

He pressed it against the band, and it dissipated.

“Maybe someone else should cut him down, Jin-hyung. Someone who has experience with swords,” Jimin said.

Jin frowned at him, then reluctantly gave up the sword.

“You have to cut the spectral chains right above his feet. Don’t cut his feet off. Kookie, V-ssi, be ready to catch him.”  
Jimin climbed up the nearest shelf, gripping the sword with one hand. He turned towards Suga and swung the sword through the chains. Jungkook and Tae stuck out their arms and caught Suga as he fell. They helped him stand up straight, then asked him what had happened.

Suga blinked a few times and shook his head.

“I blacked out after Hope-ah and I heard a commotion outside the research room. Wait, where is Hope-ah? Hope-ah!” Suga cried, looking around wildly.

Tae put his hand on Suga’s shoulder. “Don’t worry, hyung. We’ll find him.”

Suga looked at Tae with scared, wet eyes. Suddenly, Tae saw the look in Suga’s eyes change. He saw anger instead of fear, and he took his hand off Suga’s shoulder.

“Hyung?” Tae asked.

“That idiot took Hoseok away? He has no idea how much Hoseok means to Yoongi, and now he’s gonna pay for what he did.”

He left the basement and Tae looked at the others.

“What was that all about?” he asked.

“That was Agust D,” Jin said, crossing his arms.

“Guess we’d better get going. We don’t want him to get into any trouble,” Jimin said.

RM nodded. “Let’s go make sure he doesn’t try to go alone.”

They left the basement and found Agust D putting on a big black coat. He grabbed the sword from Jin and put it in the sheath he was wearing.

“Let’s get moving,” Agust D said gruffly.

He grabbed the keys and headed out of the station.

The others grabbed their things and quickly followed. They got in the truck, and Agust D raced to the address of the ghost in question.

\- End Chapter 7 -


	8. House of Cards

When they arrived at the address, they could see that Seojun had really devoted his life to black magic and the supernatural. There were all sorts of odd plants growing around his front lawn, including the unmistakable flowers of wolfsbane. There were also many skulls and bones that decorated the front of the house. It smelled like a morgue, and Tae felt more anxious. His saliva started acting up again, and he wiped it away quickly.

“That ghost better hope I’m feeling merciful,” Agust D said through gritted teeth.

He kicked open the door of the house and barged in, gripping the sword tightly. His eyes were flaming with rage as he scanned the room. There was no one in the main room, so they split up to search the rest of the house. Tae discreetly sniffed the area as he and Agust D searched in the dining room. Agust D was about to open the back door when Tae heard a muffled sound. He held up a finger, and Agust D watched him with disdain. Tae listened carefully, and he heard the sound a woman crying softly.

“I have a pretty good feeling about this door,” Tae said.

He put his hand on the knob and turned it. The sounds of crying became less muffled as he opened the door. Agust D stood behind him and peered into the darkness.

“It’s always the basement,” he muttered.

Tae followed him down the stairs, listening for any suspicious noises. He heard Agust D’s quiet, controlled breathing, and the whimpering of the woman. He could smell Agust D’s pure, untempered rage and the woman’s utter terror. But what bothered him the most was the sickening smell of excitement. It made him extremely anxious, and he could feel the saliva pooling in his mouth. He wiped away his drool and swallowed. Agust D flipped on the lights when he reached the bottom of the stairs. Tae saw J-Hope and the woman tied up the same way Suga was.

“Get the others,” Agust D said.

Tae quickly went back up the stairs and called for the others. “We found them! They’re in the basement.”

The others came quickly and followed Tae down the stairs. Agust D had used the sword to free J-Hope and was in the process of freeing the woman. Tae could still smell someone’s excitement, and it worried him. He looked around the basement, trying to find the ghost. There was a sudden gust of cold air, and the door to the basement slammed shut. Jungkook helped Agust D move J-Hope and the woman into a corner. Jin tried the door, but he couldn’t open it.

“We’re trapped,” he said.

He rejoined the group at the bottom of the stairs.

“What now?” Tae asked.

Seojun walked out of his hiding place with a look of false disappointment on his face.

“I thought you guys were more professional than this. You let your guard down and you took forever to get here! I can’t believe you guys.”

The smell of excitement was only getting stronger, and Tae began to wonder what Seojun had up his sleeve. He watched Seojun pace back and forth, eyeing each member. Tae caught his gaze and held it. Seojun stopped pacing and turned to the others.

“Who’s this? Did you guys hire someone new recently?” Seojun asked.

“We’re not telling you anything,” RM said.

Tae could smell RM’s confusion, and he felt the same way. He had no idea what Seojun was trying to do.

“I don’t really care, anyway,” Seojun said, his manner suddenly aggressive.

He glanced at the corner behind them. Tae looked back as well. Hobi was slowly getting up, wide eyes on Seojun.

Seojun gasped. “Have you been stalling me just so your friend could wake up?”

“Cut the crap, Seojun. You’re the one stalling,” Agust D said, gritting his teeth.

“Ooh, you’re feistier than before; or are you that poor little ttong-gae’s brother?”

Agust D was livid. He rushed towards Seojun, swinging the sword wildly. Seojun smiled with utter glee as he watched Agust D charge. With a flick of his hand, Seojun sent Agust D flying across the basement. The sword clattered to the ground at Seojun’s feet. Agust D groaned as he tried to stand. Tae could see that he had landed badly on his right leg. Agust D had to lean on his left leg when he stood. Seojun laughed.

“That was easy,” he said, turning back to the others. “Does anyone else want to try?”

Hobi carefully made his way over to Agust D, keeping his eyes on Seojun the whole time.

“What are you trying to do, Seojun?” RM asked, trying to take control of the situation.

“That’s a great question, Rap Monster. Let’s just say I’m conducting an experiment.”

“What kind of experiment?” Jin asked, his voice wavering slightly.

“One that tells me which Bangtan Boy is the best monster hunter. And it’s not Suga,” Seojun said, gesturing towards Agust D.

It didn’t take long for Tae, and everyone else, to figure out Seojun’s plan. He was deciding which member would be the best to possess.  
Hobi, who had been quietly making his way towards the sword, stopped what he was doing and looked at RM. His face showed that he had a crazy idea, and RM nodded slightly to show his understanding of Hobi’s idea.

“How exactly does this experiment of yours work?” RM asked.

“It’s sort of a last man standing test. Suga’s out of the game since he can’t even stand anymore.”

Agust D practically growled at Seojun. The others looked at each other. Tae wasn’t able to read the look on RM’s face, but everyone else seemed to. He could smell confidence though, so he decided to play along to the best of his ability.

“Alright, Seojun. Do you want to do this one-on-one, or all at once?” Jungkook asked, his tone cocky.

“All at once sounds like the most fun,” Seojun said with a smirk.

RM nodded. “Then all at once it is.” He looked at the rest of his team.

Then, in a collective voice, they all shouted: “Bangtaniran geol mideo!”

Tae felt a surge of pride when he heard their signature battle cry. The next moments went by fast, and the next thing Tae knew, he was flying towards a wall. He braced himself for the impact, hoping not to noticeably break anything. He slammed into the wall and grimaced. He picked himself up and found a place to hide while he gave himself a check-up.

“There you are, V-ssi,” Hobi’s voice whispered behind him.

Tae turned to face him. He was holding a plain black choker.

“You need to put this on,” Hobi said.

“Why? Are we disguising ourselves as idols?”

Hobi laughed quietly. “No. These chokers are lined with iron. We’re going to get Seojun to leave his body. Then, we’ll put a choker on the body, and Seojun will be trapped as a ghost. That way, we’ll be able to kill him.”

“That’s brilliant. How will we make Seojun come out?”

“That’s what this last man standing test is about. One of us will show enough skills to make Seojun want to possess us.”

“Okay. Who’s gonna do that?”

Hobi smiled. “What’s the point of having a contest if you already know who the winner is?”  
Tae smiled knowingly and put on his choker. He got up and joined the group of monster hunters as they faced-off against Seojun.

After nearly an hour of being thrown every which way, Tae found himself standing alone, face-to-face with Seojun. The others were mostly incapacitated, and Tae’s heart was racing. He had no idea how the others, in their poor condition, could make any effort to trap and kill Seojun.

Seojun had a greedy smile on his face. “You fight like some kind of animal!”

Tae felt his heart skip a beat. “I’m not sure if that’s a compliment or not,” he replied nervously.

“You beat the test, new guy. Now, it’s time for my reward.”

Seojun left the woman’s husband, who collapsed onto the floor. Tae thought he saw something moving in the corner of his eye, but he was focusing on Seojun, who was floating right in front of him.

“Say goodbye to your volition!” Seojun said.

Seojun flew towards Tae, preparing to possess him, then screamed in pain when he came into contact with him.

“What the hell did you do?” Seojun screamed in rage.

His ghostly hand had burn marks on it. He flew back towards the woman’s husband, but he met another obstacle. More burn marks appeared on his figure, and he screamed in agony. Tae narrowed his brows in confusion. He saw that there was a choker on the man, but he didn’t know where it came from. Seojun turned to face Tae, his eyes literally flaming with fury. Tae had never felt so much fear in his life.

“I will destroy all of you!” he screamed with rage.

Out of nowhere, Agust D appeared behind Seojun, the iron sword gripped tightly in his hands. He swung the sword through Seojun’s torso, and Seojun disappeared in a cloud of grey smoke.

“Nice swing,” Tae breathed.

His heart was pounding. As he watched Agust D limp over to him. Agust D let go of the iron sword, and it clattered at Tae’s feet. He pulled Tae into a firm, lengthy hug. Tae saw Hobi look over at them in shock. Agust D let go of Tae and patted him on the shoulder.

“You saved Yoongi’s life. That puts you on good terms with me. Don’t screw it up.”

Tae watched the look in his eyes change, and Hobi slowly limped over to them, wincing as he stepped.  
“Suga-hyung?” Hobi asked.

“Hope-ah! I thought I had lost you,” Suga said, his voice wavering from tears of joy.

He squeezed Hobi tightly, then looked around the basement. “Did we win?”

“Yeah, we did,” Hobi said.

Suga cried out suddenly, collapsing onto the ground.

“What happened to my leg?” he asked.

“Seojun threw Agust D across the room, and he landed badly,” Hobi explained, helping him up.

Suga winced as he tried to stand. Hobi grabbed him by the waist and held him up.

“Hyung, I heard Agust talking to V-ssi just before he disappeared. He said that he saved your life. Is that true?”

“Yes. Back when we were first going to take care of those skeletons, there was an ambush. If V-ga hadn’t been there, I probably would’ve died,” Suga said.

“Agust D also said that V-ssi is on good terms with him,” Hobi said.

Suga’s eyes widened.

“There’s only one other person Agust D has said that about,” he began.

He looked at Tae. “And that’s Hope-ah. That means a lot to me, V-ga.”

Tae smiled brightly. “Does that mean I’m on good terms with you, too?”

“Well, you’re certainly on good terms with me,” Hobi said. “If Suga-hyung is your hyung, then I’m your hyung as well. My real name is Jung Hoseok, by the way.”

“Oh, right. My name’s Min Yoongi,” Suga said, going a little red.

“Kim Taehyung. I’m still not sure what the big deal is,” Tae said.

“Hyung, Agust D hugged this man,” Hobi said. “He’s never even hugged me.”

“That’s a huge deal, Taehyungie. Agust D is constantly looking out for me. He wants me to be safe. When Agust D puts his trust in people, that means that I can, too. You’ve become a very important person in my life, Taehyungie.”

Tae felt very good about himself. He was glad to have made such a connection with someone. He was still wary of telling Suga his secret, because Agust D didn’t seem like the kind of person that would take it well. He helped everyone get to their feet and get back to the truck. They drove to the hospital and made sure that everyone was taken care of.

\- End Chapter 8 -


	9. Stigma

Once everyone was at full health, they went back to the condemned station. They all sat around the table, eating ramen.

“That was almost as tough as our first job, don’t you think, Jin-hyung?” RM asked.

“We were really underprepared for that werewolf, though. I think this one was much more difficult.”

Tae listened intently. “Your first monster was a werewolf?”

“Yeah, and we had barely started,” Jimin said.

“We’re very lucky to have had Suga and his superpower,” Jin said.

J-Hope frowned. “Hyung, I’ve told you before not to call it that.”

Jin laughed. “You know me, I’m very forgetful.”

Hobi rolled his eyes and put a hand on Suga’s thigh.

“If Agust D hadn’t been there, though, we would’ve been goners,” Jungkook said, continuing the story.

Suga stood up suddenly. He took his ramen and went up the stairs without a word. Hobi got up and went after him. The others sat in silence.

“I don’t see what the issue is,” Jin muttered. “We were complimenting him.”

Tae looked up at the stairs and frowned. He knew he needed to get more information about Agust D before he made any judgements.

Jin got up with a huff and went to the front. Tae heard the door open and close. Moments later, the truck revved up and faded away. RM looked down at his noodles.

“I’ll be in my room if you need anything,” he said after a while.

He got up and went up the stairs. Tae looked at Jimin and Jungkook. Jimin was looking down at the table, and Jungkook seemed unphased.

“How much do you guys know about Agust D?” Tae asked.

Jungkook looked at Jimin, who hadn’t moved a muscle.

“Well, Jiminie has met Agust D in person.”

Tae leaned forward. “Really? What was he like?”

Jungkook coughed. Jimin gave him a dirty look.

“He was very rude and, quite honestly, intimidating. He doesn’t have the best of manners and gets even worse around me. I think he tries to impress me with his ‘bad boy’ thing.”

Tae frowned. “He tries to impress you?”

Jimin nodded, shifting his gaze towards Tae. “Yeah, he likes me.”

Tae was taken aback. “Suga-hyung doesn’t really seem that interested in you, though.”

Jimin shrugged. “That’s just Suga-hyung. Agust D is different, remember.”

Tae nodded in understanding. “That’s going to be confusing for me.”

Jimin laughed. “Yeah, it is. But I can always tell when it’s Agust D.”

He stared at his noodles for a moment.

“Suga-hyung never flirts with me,” he said, a distant look in his eyes.

Tae looked at Jungkook, trying to escape the sudden tension.

Jungkook shrugged and got up. “I’ll be in our room, hyungjae.” He left the kitchen and Tae sighed.

“What about Jungkook-ah? You two seem close.”

Jimin smiled discreetly.

“Not as much now,” he muttered.

He slurped up some noodles.

“Kookie likes to hang out with you more. He has lots of fun with you.”

Tae was confused. “What are you talking about? Jungkook-ah always talks about you. He looks up to all his hyungjae, especially you. He told me that you are the reason he is so good at monster hunting.”

Jimin smiled and looked up at Tae. “Kookie said that?”

Tae nodded. Jimin smiled again and continued eating. Tae felt that the tension had eased up, and he went to find Jungkook.

“Hey, Kookie,” Tae said, entering their room. “Why did you leave?”

“I don’t do well in awkward situations,” Jungkook replied.

Tae nodded in understanding. “That’s fair.”

“Why did you ask about Agust D anyway?” Jungkook asked.

“I just want to know more about him. After all, he hugged me and told me that I was on good terms with him.”

Jungkook’s eyes widened. “He did what?”

“He hugged me. It was very strange.”

Jungkook smiled. “That means Agust D likes you more than he likes Hobi-hyung.”

Tae shrugged. “That’s why I want to know more about him. So that I can know what not to do around Yoongi-hyung.”

Jungkook nodded. “You should probably talk to Yoongi-hyung about him. He does know him the best.”

“I suppose you’re right. I’ll go and talk to him now. You should go talk to Jimin-ssi,” Tae said as he left the room.

Tae found Suga sitting on his bed, with Hobi sitting next to him.

"Yoongi-hyung? Can I talk to you about something?" he asked.

Hobi looked at Suga, and Suga nodded his head. Hobi got up and left the room. Suga waited until Hobi's footsteps couldn't be heard in the hall.

"You're wondering about Agust D, aren't you?" he said, turning back to Tae.

Tae nodded shamefully.

"It's okay. I don't really mind talking about it." 

Tae sighed in relief.

Suga scooted over and patted the bed beside him. "The first time Agust D appeared, I was about to start high school. I was hanging out with my friends in the park one night. Playing in the dark was way more fun for us. We were shooting hoops and playing tag. The park was right on the edge of a thick forest. That night was a full moon, and we probably shouldn't have been out at all."

Tae tensed up. He had a pretty bad feeling about where the story was going.

"I had gone to get the basketball out of a patch of trees, when I heard my friends screaming. I ran back to the court and saw a werewolf. I watched him kill my friends one by one. When the werewolf spotted me, I blacked out."

Tae felt bad for Suga. He knew how destructive and vicious werewolves could be. "You saw your friends get killed by a werewolf? That's what made Agust D come out?"

Suga nodded.

"Hyung, that's terrible. I can't imagine how that feels."

Suga clenched his fists. "You can probably imagine how I feel about werewolves. And Agust D hates them even more than I do."

Tae looked away. "What happened after you blacked out?" he asked.

Suga shrugged. "Agust D did what he could to protect me. When I was myself again, I was in the hospital. The doctors told me that I, or Agust D, had punctured the werewolf's jugular with my silver stud. They said it was very lucky."

Tae was surprised. "Agust D killed a werewolf with an earring?"

Suga nodded. "He's very resourceful. Because of that night, any news about werewolves killing others makes him come out more than anything. I can't control him at all when the subject comes up."

Tae looked down. He knew that there was very little chance of Suga accepting his secret now.

"Agust D keeps a newspaper clipping of that night in his jacket," Suga said.

He got up and grabbed the big black jacket hanging by the door. He pulled out an old clipping and showed it to Tae.

'Young Teen Miraculously Stabs Werewolf in Jugular with Silver Earring,' the title read.

Tae looked at the picture below the heading and felt his heart skip a beat. The silver stud stuck out against the dark blood from the man's neck. His mouth was covered in blood, and part of someone's arm could be seen in the background. Tae shivered.

Suga put the photo away. "When I got home from the hospital, my father disciplined me for attacking instead of running away. My mother told him not to be so hard on me, and he said I was lucky that he was restraining himself. My father hit her, and I blacked out after that."

Tae put his hand over his mouth.

"When I came to myself again, I was on a train to Seoul. I was scared, but I knew that I couldn't go back. I lived on the streets for a year until Jin found me. He offered me a place to stay, and I ended up helping him and RM start their monster hunting group." 

Tae was at a loss for words. "You've been through so much," he finally said. 

Suga sighed. "I wouldn't be here without Agust D." He stared at the jacket for a while. He squeezed his eyes shut and exhaled slowly. "Hobi-ga! I need you!" he shouted suddenly. 

Moments later, Hobi appeared in the doorway. He looked down at the jacket and quickly went to Suga's side. He frowned at Tae. "Yoongi-hyung shouldn't be talking about Agust D."

Tae was surprised at Hobi's sudden outburst. "But hyung said he didn't mind!" He looked at Suga, who seemed to be entranced by the jacket. "I'm sorry."

Hobi sighed. "Leave us alone for a moment." 

Tae got up and left the room.

\- End Chapter 9 -


	10. Ups and Downs

Tae went back down the stairs and saw that Jimin was still in the kitchen.

"Jimin-ssi?" Tae said as he approached.

"Yes?" Jimin said, turning to face Tae.

"Did Jungkook-ah come and talk to you?"

Jimin shook his head. "He walked right past me and went outside."

Tae looked towards the back door.

"Did you tell him to come and talk to me?" Jimin asked.

Tae nodded. "You seemed upset, and I thought that he could cheer you up."

Jimin laughed. "Kookie isn't very good at cheering me up."

"Oh," Tae said, feeling like an idiot.

"But thanks for trying, V-ssi."

Tae frowned. He was confused by the team's group dynamics, but he didn't want to overthink anything. He sighed and headed back towards the stairs, but he suddenly felt his senses overload.

"Are you okay, V-ssi?" Jimin's usually soft voice resounded in Tae's ears.

Tae felt his heart skip a beat as he realized that he had stayed human for nearly six full moons. He wondered if that was long enough to make him turn feral. He took a deep breath and was overwhelmed by Jimin's sweet smell. He could feel drool building up in his mouth. His ears started ringing, and he made his way to the sink. He splashed water on his face and sighed. He closed his eyes and breathed slowly. He felt his senses starting to calm down, and he turned around to see Jimin, whose face was pale with worry.

"I'm fine, Jimin-ssi," Tae muttered quickly.

Jimin furrowed his eyebrows and frowned. "Like hell you are, V-ssi," he replied. He crossed his arms and tapped his foot.

Tae continued trying to convince Jimin that he was okay. "It's a very rare thing, honest. It only happens around my birthday," Tae said, thinking on the fly.

"When is your birthday?" Jimin asked skeptically.

"It's the 30th. I'll be fine now, really," Tae said.

Jimin nodded, relaxing his muscles, which had tensed up in the moment. "We should celebrate your birthday soon, then. Don't you think?" Jimin asked.

Tae's eyes lit up. "Of course!"

Jimin rolled his eyes. "I suppose you really are fine. Don't scare me like that anymore, okay?"

Tae nodded. "I'll do my best."

He checked the time and went up the stairs. He took a shower and got into his bed. Sometime later, he heard Jungkook and Jimin come in, quietly whispering about something. Jungkook crawled into the bed with Tae, blatantly ignoring Jimin's orders.

"Leave V-ssi alone. He wasn't feeling very well earlier. Come sleep on my side tonight," Jimin whispered.

Jungkook snuggled closer to Tae.

"No, V-hyung is warmer than you."

Jimin made no sound of protest as he got into his own bed.

"Goodnight, Jungkookie," he whispered.

"Goodnight, Jimin-hyung," Jungkook replied.

Tae smiled to himself as Jungkook placed his arm on top of him. He fell asleep still smiling, but his peaceful sleep was interrupted by an awful nightmare. He dreamed that he had lost control of his wolf side and ate all the other Bangtan Boys. He woke up in fright and sighed in relief when he felt Jungkook's arm still on him. He got up and went into the bathroom. He splashed cold water on his face and took a deep breath. After a few minutes of staring at himself in the mirror, he went back to the bedroom. He got back into bed and slept without any other drastic nightmares.

Tae woke up the next day feeling really worn out. He went downstairs and made himself breakfast. He recalled the events of the night before and looked out the front window. He saw that Jin had not come back from wherever he went, and he wondered how RM was doing.

He went up the stairs after finishing his breakfast and went into RM and Jin's room. Tae peeked around the corner at RM's side of the room. He saw a few pictures of Jin, RM, and Suga pinned above RM's bed. There was a notebook stuffed with loose pages sitting on the bedside table. Tae saw a sketch that resembled open doors. He saw several words scrawled on the papers as well. Some of the words appeared to be English, and Tae grew more and more curious. He pulled out one of the papers and squinted at the words.

"Beyond the Scene," RM said behind him.

Tae set the paper down and turned around. "You can write in English?" he asked.

RM nodded. "I started practicing English back when we first created the Bangtan Boys. Just in case we ever needed to go to America."

"Can you teach me some English?" Tae asked.

RM laughed at Tae's enthusiasm. "Okay," he said.

"Oh-khay," Tae repeated, laughing at the sound of his own voice. "What is 'Beyond the Scene?'"

"That's one of my first ideas for our group name. It took a while to come up with the Bangtan Boys.

"Do I smell an origin story?" Tae asked.

RM laughed. "Sure."

Tae plopped down on RM's bed. "Let's hear it," he said, patting the spot next to him.

RM laughed some more and sat down next to Tae.

"It was five years ago. I had just moved to Seoul from Ilsan. I stepped off the train and made my way out of the station. I set my bags down while I waited to cross the street. It had rained the night before, so there were a few puddles on the road. A car came speeding around the corner, and I got totally soaked. I heard an awful screech, and suddenly someone was running towards me at full speed."

Tae frowned in confusion. "What happened?"

"The driver of the car saw what had happened, so he pulled over immediately to help me out. He picked up my things and put them in his trunk. He laid a towel down on the passenger's seat and drove me to his home."

"Who was it?" Tae asked.

"Jin-hyung," RM said with a tender smile.

Tae leaned forward with interest. "So, he took you to his house just because he splashed some water on you?"

RM laughed. "Yeah, he did. He really cared about other people. Well, he mainly cared about their looks. He took me in and bought me a whole new set of clothes. I kind of became his roommate after that."

"Jin-hyung is a very interesting person," Tae said.

"Yeah, he is. I heard him talking on the phone one day. He had a big fat book in his lap as well. It was old, and it was full of stuff about monsters. He was talking to the other person about Berserkers. I waited for him to finish talking, then I asked him about the book. He said it was his family's bestiary, and that he was talking to a friend that was part of a monster hunting group. That's when my idea sparked. I went to work coming up with a name and getting supplies. Jin was very supportive of my idea, and so was his dad. He gave us most of our funding."

"That's very fortunate. I had to save up my own money just to get a train ticket," Tae said.

"I wasn't the only person that Jin took in," RM continued.

"You're talking about Suga-hyung, aren't you?"

RM nodded. "He ran away from home and didn't have any money. He was willing to join our little group, though. Once we found out about his disorder, we were happy to help him in any way. Agust D was a really big help to us as well. Then J-Hope-hyung came along. He was looking for a monster hunting group that wasn't already 'maxed out.' He knew some expert techniques for hunting monsters, so we let him stay. Jungkook and Jimin showed up after we put out some flyers."

"That's cool to know, hyung," Tae said, quickly putting his hands over his mouth as he realized what he said.

"Relax, V-ga. You can call me hyung," RM said.

Tae smiled. "You can call me Kim Taehyung."

"Imagine that," RM said. "We've got another Kim in the group. I'm Kim Namjoon."

They heard the front door open, and RM stood up suddenly. He went downstairs, and Tae followed quickly behind him. RM's shoulders sank when he saw that the truck was still gone.

Suga was out at the mailbox. He pulled out a handful of letters and thumbed through them. He squinted at one of them, then looked back at the station with a gummy smile. He went back inside.

"V-ga! There's a letter for you," he said excitedly.

Tae took the letter and smiled. It was from his parents. He raced up to his room and opened it.

_Taehyung,_

_We all wish you well from the farm. We hope that you are doing well at your new job. How have you been? Have you had any problems relating to the full moon? We're all so worried about you and we would like to hear from you soon._

Tae felt a small pit in his stomach. He hadn't written to them at all since he arrived in Seoul.

_Everything is going smoothly here, even without you around. Our strawberries are coming along very well. Maybe we'll send you some in the future. Be sure to have fun and stay safe!_

_Love,_

_Eomma and Appa_

Tae smiled to himself as he got a piece of paper and started writing back to them. He was glad that they had remembered to keep in touch. He wrote about his training with the other members and his exciting first job before he mentioned his senses' overload from the night before. He told them all the stories that the other members had shared with him.

\- End Chapter 10 -


	11. Are You Happy Now?

"V-ga!" RM called from downstairs, a worried tone in his voice.

"What is it, hyung?" Tae asked, putting away his parents' letter and sealing his own.

"Jin-hyung is back!"

Tae jumped up and went down the stairs quickly. He saw Jin, standing with his arms crossed, and Suga, whose face was almost as red as the strawberries Tae was so used to growing.

"Where would I go, hyung?" Suga asked, practically yelling.

"You'll have to figure that out on your own, Yoongi," Jin said flatly.

Suga was speechless. He just stared at Jin in disbelief. Jin's eyes were cold.

Tae took a moment to assess the situation. He looked at RM when he realized what was happening.

"Hyung, please," Suga finally said.

The anger had completely left his voice. Tears were starting to form around the corners of his eyes.

Tae wondered where Hobi was. He was worried that situation would cause Agust D to come out.

Jin remained firm. "Get your stuff and get out. I'm not tolerating your behavior anymore."

Suga opened his mouth in protest.

"I took you in, Yoongi! I shared my house with you when you didn't have one! And what have you done for me?" Jin's question hit Suga hard.

He was sobbing now, his shoulders shaking violently.

"I'm sure Agust D can take care of you," Jin concluded. He pushed past Tae and stormed up the stairs.

RM looked back and forth between Jin and Suga. He made up his mind and followed Jin up the stairs.

Tae placed a hand on Suga's shoulder. He was crying silently.

The back door opened, and Tae heard Hobi, Jungkook, and Jimin come in, laughing about something they had been talking about. They walked into the main room, and Hobi was immediately at Suga's side.

"What happened?" Jimin asked.

"Jin-hyung came back," Tae said quietly.

Jungkook and Jimin's eyes went wide.

“What did he say?" Hobi asked.

"I didn't hear it, but I'm pretty sure he kicked Yoongi-hyung out."

Hobi was fuming. "He did what?!"

"He said I had to get my stuff and get out," Suga said through sobs.

Hobi squeezed Suga tightly. "I'll come with you, hyung," he said quietly.

Suga smiled at Hobi. "No, you shouldn't. I know how much you love being a monster hunter," he muttered, wiping his eyes.

"But you need me, hyung," Hobi said.

Suga shook his head. "I'll be fine."

Hobi shook his head. "Jin-hyung! Get down here right now," he shouted.

Tae was startled by Hobi's sudden change in mood. It was almost as if he himself had a second personality.

"My decision is final! Leave with him if you want!" Jin called.

"What the hell is wrong with you? You can't just tell Yoongi to leave like that!"

"He's been pissy with me since we started this group! I'm not tolerating it anymore!" Jin shouted.

Hobi clenched his fists. "'He's been pissy?' I think you've got that backwards, hyung!"

Tae heard footsteps from upstairs.

Jin appeared at the bottom of the stairs. He looked furious.

Hobi stood up and placed himself between Suga and Jin.

Jungkook and Jimin quietly moved next to Tae.

"You think I'm the one that's been pissy? Do you want to get kicked out as well?" Jin said.

Hobi was defiant. "Go ahead and kick me out! I'd much rather be with Yoongi than you."

Jin looked hurt. "Fine. Get your things and get out."

Hobi's expression was sad for only a second, but Tae could still smell it.

Suga grabbed Hobi's hand, an expressionless look on his face. "Hoseok," he said flatly.

Hobi turned and looked at Suga.

"I don't need another Agust D."

His words hung in the air, surrounded by absolute silence.

Hobi was stunned. Jin opened his mouth, but immediately changed his mind. He slowly back out of the main room and went back up the stairs.

"If we're both leaving, you're not coming with me."

Hobi's shoulders sank. "Hyung, I was only trying to help," he muttered, reaching for Suga's hand.

"Enough, Hoseok! Yoongi's been through enough today! He's made up his mind," Agust D snapped, pulling his arm away.

Hobi's eyes widened and he sank down to the floor.

Agust D glared down at him. He went up the stairs without a word.

Tae looked at Jimin and Jungkook. They were both as worried as he was.

Hobi was sitting on the floor, his shoulders shaking. No one knew what to say.

A few minutes later, Agust D came back down the stairs with a suitcase. Hobi didn't look up as he stormed by.

They heard the door slam, and Hobi looked up slowly.

"Hyung, are you okay?" Jimin asked quietly.

Hobi shook his head.

"What should we do?" Tae asked.

"He's never come out because of me," Hobi whispered.

"Don't think like that, hyung. He'll come to his senses. He knows Yoongi-hyung shouldn't be out on the streets," Jimin said.

Hobi sighed. "Well, I've been kicked out as well. I'll have to go back to Gwangju." He got off the floor and hugged the maknae trio. "I'll miss this," he said, looking around the room. He went up the stairs and got his things together.

Tae was speechless as Hobi carried his suitcase down the stairs. He had no idea he would end up witnessing such drama.

"Are you guys going to be okay with two less hunters?" Tae asked.

Jimin shrugged. "They started with three."

"Don't worry, I'm sure Jin-hyung will come to his senses eventually. RM will work on him," Jungkook said.

Jimin nodded in agreement. Tae shrugged and went back up to the room. He continued writing his letter, adding a little bit about the situation that had just unfolded moments ago. He wrapped up the letter by thanking his parents for writing to him and telling them how much he loved them.

He folded up the letter and tucked it under his pillow. He decided that he would mail it once all the tension died down. He heard a commotion across the hall, and he opened his door. He saw RM standing outside of his room, a blank look on his face.

"Namjoon-hyung, what's up?" Tae called.

RM blinked and looked at him. "Jin-hyung is being difficult. Have Yoongi and Hoseok left already?"

Tae nodded, and RM looked disheartened.

"We need to try and get them back. Jin needs some work, but we have to go and find the others. We don't want to have to go all the way to Gwangju or Daegu."

Tae reached forward to open Jin's door, but RM stopped his hand.

"What? Don't we need to talk to him?"

RM shook his head. "Not yet. Give him time. Let's go find those two first."

\- End Chapter 11 -


	12. Moving On

Tae and RM went downstairs and found Jimin and Jungkook quietly conversing in the kitchen. They both looked at RM with hopeful looks on their faces.

"Jin-hyung isn't coming around quite yet. But that doesn't mean we shouldn't go and get the others. We want them to be right around the corner once Jin realizes how dumb he's being."

They heard Jin's phone ringing loudly from upstairs, and they hushed their conversation.

"Let's hope Yoongi-hyung finished setting up that outside camera," RM said.

Jimin nodded vigorously. "I helped him with that. Everything is set up."

He quickly went to the room behind the stairs, where their only computer sat. He got on and opened the camera software. He started the playback for the video and squinted at it.

RM leaned in as well. "Dammit! What's with this angle?"

"I don't know, but this makes things difficult," Jimin muttered.

"What's the matter?" Tae asked.

"The truck blocks our view of Yoongi. But we can see Hobi-hyung getting into a taxi. Then it goes towards the airport. But I have no idea where Yoongi is. He might have gone around the back of the building, or he didn't go the same way. We have no idea."

They all heard Jin's door open and close, followed by Jin's footsteps rushing down the stairs. He found them all in front of the computer.

"Jungkookie! I need you to come with me." "What's going on?" Jungkook asked.

"My friend just called me. He says he saw a wraith in the park. Several people have already been put under the influence. We need to handle the situation."

Jungkook would've dropped whatever he was holding if he had something, and he bolted out of the computer room. He grabbed the silver bat from the weapons closet and followed Jin outside the station.

RM exchanged glances with Jimin and Tae, blinking at the rapidly occurring events.

"Well, I guess we'll have to wait a bit longer before we can go out and fetch the others," Jimin said plainly.

RM nodded, watching the playback one more time before turning to leave the room. "Hopefully they aren't too far away by then," he said.

Tae frowned as RM left the room and his footsteps could be heard going up the stairs.

"Hopefully nothing bad happens to Jungkook and Jin," Jimin said as he shut down the software.

Tae followed him to the kitchen, not sure what he could be doing to help the others. He settled on keeping Jimin company while they waited.

Jimin got up after several long minutes and went out to the training field.

Tae sighed to himself and looked around the kitchen. He could hear the quiet squeaking of a mouse somewhere in the framework of the station. He got up and decided to go up to RM's room. He knocked on the door.

"Yes?" was RM's exasperated reply.

Tae walked in quietly. "How are you doing?"

The leader had a very disheveled air about him, and Tae was worried about the effects of the previous events on him. He had known RM to be sensitive to the way Jin reacted to things, and he didn't seem very happy with what had transpired.

"I'm alright, Tae. I just can't believe we lost two members in one day. And it wasn't even because of monsters."

They heard the door of their truck slam loudly, followed by Jin screaming for help. Tae followed RM out of the station.

Jimin had gone around the back and was already there. Jin and Jimin were struggling to keep their grip on a writhing Jungkook, who continuously fired off profane insults.

"What the hell happened?" RM asked.

Jin dodged Jungkook's elbow, and scared expression on his face. "The wraith snuck up on us. He got Jungkook before I could do anything. I had to knock him out just to get him to the truck."

RM's eyes widened.

Tae hadn't skipped the part about wraiths when he studied his family's bestiary, so he understood the gravity of the situation. Wraiths had a way of controlling people without physically possessing them, so they were capable of controlling several people at once. It was a form of hypnotism, but it only took seconds for the wraith to gain complete control.

"What do we need to do?" Jimin asked, stepping on Jungkook's feet to keep him from kicking.

"Keep him away from dangerous objects for now. I need to consult the bestiary," Jin said.

RM took Jin's place holding Jungkook by the armpits, and Jin rushed inside the station.

Tae furrowed his brows, trying to recall what he had read about Wraiths. He clapped his hands and raced into station as he remembered the cure. He found Jin still flipping through his bestiary.

"Jin-ssi! It's silver! You need to place something silver over his eyes!" Tae said.

Jin looked up at Tae and frowned. "How do you know that?"

"I studied my family's bestiary for months before I came to join you guys."

Jin slammed the book shut and ran to the weapons closet. He found a silver bar and pulled it out. He ran out of the station, Tae close behind.

They saw the rest of their team knocked out on the ground. The truck was gone.

"Oh, this is bad," Jin said.

Jimin was the first to come to. He jumped up and looked around. He dropped his fists and looked at Tae and Jin in shame. "He overpowered both of us. I'm sorry, hyung."

Jin patted Jimin on the shoulder. "Don't worry. We'll make sure Jungkook is okay."

RM groaned behind them, and Jin was quick to pull him up. RM rubbed his head and looked around. "Crap. He got away," he said. Suddenly, he snapped his fingers and looked at Jimin. "Did Yoongi ever get that tracker set up?"

Jimin scrunched up his nose. "I think so. I saw him working on it last week."

They all went back inside the station. They squeezed into the computer room and Jimin pulled up the tracker. They could see that it was moving, but it seemed to be moving towards the police station.

"He's coming back?" Jin said, obviously surprised.

"Maybe the wraith lost its control," Jimin suggested.

"Maybe. Or maybe the wraith wants more people to possess," RM said.

"Either way, we're ready for whoever shows up, aren't we?" Tae said.

Jin looked down at the bar of silver still clutched in his hand. "Yeah, we are."

They watched as the tracker grew closer and closer to their address, moving at dangerous speeds. Once the tracker was on their street, they all went outside to see what had happened. The truck pulled in to the station, and a familiar person in a large black jacket got out. Everyone was silent as Agust D walked around to the passenger's side of the truck and picked up Jungkook.

"The bat's in the back," he muttered as he carried Jungkook inside.

Tae and RM went to the back of the truck, where the silver bat sat. RM picked it up, and they could both see a bit of blood on it. They rushed inside with the bat, eager to find out what happened. They saw Jungkook laying on the couch, his nose looking bruised and bloody.

"What happened?" RM asked.

"After I left, I decided to go to the park to help Yoongi clear his head. I tapped out, and Yoongi took a rejuvenating stroll. There was some commotion down the path, and Yoongi quickly acted by hiding behind the nearest dumpster. We saw the truck pull up after a while, and Jin and this one came out, talking about a wraith. We saw the wraith sneak up on Jungkook, and then Jin had to knock him out. Yoongi was pretty much useless. He watched Jin drive off and didn't move a muscle. He spotted the wraith again and decided that I might be able to help. I quickly grabbed the bat that Jungkook dropped and Jin neglected to pick up. I was ready to defend myself, then I saw the truck again. I saw Jungkook get out, but he was still under the wraith's influence. So, I hit him in the face with the bat to get him out of his trance. Then I beat that wraith out of existence. Jungkook was out cold from my swing, so I decided to bring him back here. Now, I'll be out of your hair for good."

He shot a piercing glare at Jin and turned to leave the station. Tae saw indecisiveness flash in Jin's eyes.

\- End Chapter 12 -


End file.
